Apparatus for flame hardening



Aug. 25, 1942. R. J. wbLF APPARATUS 'FOR FLAME HARDEMNG Filed July 12, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 870/490 J WOLF,

Patented Aug. 25, i942 v unirso STATES PATENT, OFFICE 7 2,294,062 APPARATUS F01; FLAME HARDENING Richard J. Wall,- Chicago, Ill. Application July 12, 1941, Serial No. 402,219

4 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in anparatus for flame hardening, and more particularly to apparatus for the flame hardening of spur gears and the like.

In the process of flame hardening, it is desired to raise the temperature of a, localized surface area of the articles to be hardened above the critical temperature of the steel thereof, and

then quench the heated area in a, suitable medium to impart the desired surface hardness to the metal. In such a, process, the depth of hardness is controlled by the degree of heat penetration at critical temperature and the severity of the quench.

It is an object of my invention to provide an improved apparatus wherein the quenching medium may be applied to the preheated surface of the steel to properly quench the same without interfering with the work in that order, said heat and quench and the work then being moved relatively so as to treat the work progressively upward from the lowermost portion thereof. In this manner, gravity controls the vertical limit and distribution of the quenching medium so as not to inter fere with the heating process.

My invention contemplates effecting a move-' ment of the articles being treated in relation to the flame and a quenching bath, thereby enabling the continuous treatment of a plurality of superimposed articles, and employs a multiplicity of torches or other heat sources, thereby enabling increased production in a flamehardening treatment while at the same time maintaining controlled uniformity of the treatment.

Further objects are to provide an apparatus for the purposes stated including indexing means for alignment of the torches and gears, to provide a simple and efiicient mounting for the mul- 2 designates a cylina'quenching medium the application, of heat thereto,

- the latter centrally within or bath 3. A hydraulic cylinder 4 is mounted centrally of the bottom of a piston or plunger 5 for the tank for receiving vertical movement of the bath 3. The upper end of the plunger 5 is provided with a workreceiving table or chuck 6, rotatably supported on said plunger as by means of a bearing 7, said chuck being provided with a series of vertically extending elongated jaws 8 for receiving and supporting a plurality of spur gears 9 by the com tral bores or apertures of the latter.

The upper free terminals of the jaws 8 are internally threaded to receive a threaded taper plug it for expanding said jaws outwardly into holding engagement with the gears thereon. In this manner, a column composed'oi a plurality of superimposed identical gears may be mounted with their respective teeth It disposed in vertical alignment, and when so assembled, the gears may be treated as a unit. By controlling the supply of fluid to and from the cylinder at, as by I2, th plunger and raised or lowered in quenching liquid or means of a regulating valve the plurality of gears may be relation to the level of the bath 3.

A pair of circular tracks is are concentrically disposed about the tank 2, being supported from the latter by a series of brackets it. Movable on the tracks iii, I provide a plurality of carriages i5 mounting and supporting torches or heating devices IE. A pair of torches may be provided on eachcarriage 15, said torches being radially positioned with respect to the common vertical axis of the gears Q and being slidably adjustable toward and away from the gears as by means of supporting rods l1 reciprocable in adjustable tubular supports it of the carriages. Also, the torches it are preferably pivoted at I9 at their point of connection with their respective rods i7, thereby permitting pivotal movement for alignment of the torch tips 20 with as particularly shown in Fig. 2.

Hence, each of the pairs of torches 86 may be properly spaced for impingement of the flames thereof on opposite sides of a gear tooth H of the superimposed gears 9, and said pairs of torches may be moved on their circular tracks 58 upon supporting carriage wheels 2| to selectively position said pairs of torches in relation to the plurality of teeth of the gears.

In the event that the gears 9 have even num-' bers of teeth, the carriages l5 may be diametrically disposed on opposite sides of the tank 2, by means of locking pins 22 engageable in diametrically disposed recesses 23 in the rim or body the gear teeth ii, a

of the tank.- Also,

when treating gears having even numbers of teeth, upon diametrically'locating the carriages and torches in scribed, the chuck 6 of a handle 24 bath 3, to thereby align with said torches. radial index finger or cured over the upper A spring pressed pawl 25 is adjustably seedge of the tank 2 for enthe manner demay be rotated as by means extending upwardly above the a selected gear tooth retractable trance between the teeth of the positioned series of gears 9 to thereby rotation and in alignment with maintain the same against the torches.

In operation, the series of superimposed gears 9 are lowered by means of plunger until the lowermost gear thereof is immediately above the surface of the quenching bath 3 and torches I6 are positioned to have their tips immediately above said bath 3. Upon attaining of the torches, the hy- I2 is opened and adjusted to effect \preheating by means draulic valve La desired lowering of the quenching bath,

aligned teeth of the respective g thecolumn of gears 9 into whereby the selected and ears are continuously and uniformly heated and quenched. As the selected teeth of the uppermost gear are quenched, the column to starting position at of gears is again elevated the surface of the bath,

said column rotated and indexed by the device for alignment of other teeth with the torches,

and the heating and quenching operation is repeated as before. Hence, the foregoing cycle is repeated until each of the aligned series of gear teeth of the column of to the hardening treatment.

gears has been subjected When it is desired to harden identical gears 9 having uneven numbers finger 25 is employed s torches adjusted for of teeth, the indexing before, and the pairs of roper convergence upon opposite faces of the selected gear teeth. However, since the carriages I5 will no longer be diametrically opposed, the same are provided with track clamps 26 for securing the carriages and torches to the tracks l3 in selected adjustment about the column of gears.

For the purpose of supplying the torches l6, ar

cuate oxygen manifolds 21 and acetylene manifolds 28 are mounted on the under sides of the brackets ll, said manifolds having a plurality of spaced hose cocks 2 torches l6 as by fle for connection with the le conduits or hoses 30..

Supply pipes 3| and 32 are provided for. respectively conducting oxygen and acetylene to the arcuate manifolds 21 and 28.

Thus, by

tical gears at one time, hardening treatment.

the apparatus of my am enabled to flame harden a plurality of ideninvention. I

thereby effecting uniform, My improved apparatus provides a positive and simple control for carrying out the heating and order to maintain treatment.

quenching operations in the desired uniformity of heat Various changes' and modifications are contemplated within the scope 0 claims.

f the following quenching liquid in the desired .column into the I claim:

1. Apparatus for flame hardening a plurality 'of identical spur gears and the like, including a quenching tank, a chuck for supporting a vertically aligned column of said gears centrally of the tank, a trackway about the tank, carriages movable on said trackway, each of said carriages having a pair of flame devices thereon, means for adjustably positioning the flame devices to direct the flames thereof inwardly toward the gear column and immediately above the level of the the tank, and means for lowering the chuck and gear column into the quenching liquid.

2. Apparatus for flame hardening a plurality of identical spur gears and the like, including a quenching tank, a chuck for supporting a vertically aligned 'column of said gears centrally of the tank, a trackway about the tank, carriages movable on said trackway, each of said carriages having a pair of flame devices thereon, means for adjustably positioning the flame devices to direct the flames thereof inwardly toward the gear column and immediately above the level of the quenching liquid in the tank, means for lowering' the chuck and gear column into the quenching liquid, and indexing means engaging the gear teeth means adjustably engaging the teeth of the gear column to maintain alignment of the torches and selected gear teeth of the successive gears as the column thereof is lowered.

4. Apparatus for flame hardening a plurality of identical spur gears and the like each having a central bore, including a chuck having jaws entered in said bores for supporting a column of said gears with the respective teeth thereof in alignment, a quenching bath, a pair of adjacent related flame devices directed convergently inward toward a selected tooth of the gear column immediately above the quenching bath, means supporting said flame devices for adjustable travel thereof circumferentially about the column, means for lowering the chuck and gear quenching bath, and a stationary index flnger slidably engaging the gear teeth for maintaining alignment of like teeth of the gears with the flame devices during the lowering of said gear column.

RICHARD J. WOLF.

for guiding the lowering of the gear column in accordance with the alignment a chuck for supporting an 

